Where Do We Go From Here?

May 25, 2020: a date that millions of people will never forget. On this day exactly a year ago, on Memorial Day, to be precise, George Floyd, who was 46 at the time, died due to now former Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin, pressing his knee on his neck for more than nine minutes. Despite Floyd’s constant pleas for Chauvin and from bystanders to let him breathe, Chauvin ignored them and the officers refused to intervene. Floyd’s death had sparked protests from not only around the country, but all over the world. Last month, Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter. He’s expected to be sentenced next month. The trial of the two other former cops, accused of aiding and abetting, will take place in March of 2022.

So where do we go from here? So far in 2021, mostly black men are still getting killed by police officers. Many would keep saying the following anytime a black person is murdered in that manner to the effect of: “If he/she would’ve followed the officer’s orders, then they wouldn’t have been shot.” Even if they did, that doesn’t mean that they deserve to lose their lives. People who say stuff like that are missing the point. What we want is police officers who take someone’s life to be fully held accountable for their actions. Accountability is what black people and everyone else have been seeking for decades. In other words, police officers being arrested for crimes as opposed to putting them on administrative leave (paid or unpaid) or on bond.

President Biden has called on Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which has gained momentum and recently passed the House, but many are still in opposition of it. The bill possibly passing in the Senate is uncertain. If this were to pass and made into law, it would ban chokeholds and no-knock warrants at the Federal level, prohibiting racial profiling on all levels, among many others.

The fight for racial justice will continue and make sure that police officers who abuse their power and authority are charged, prosecuted, found guilty, and sentenced. Just because they have a gun and a badge, it doesn’t mean that they’re above the law. I’m not saying that all police officers are bad. There are good ones who are dedicated to protecting our communities and leading by example. Too many black lives have been taken away from their families. Yes, it always makes me sad and angry at the same time. It’s mainly because too many cops are getting away with murder and less justice for the families of the slain. This has been a common theme for decades and while I’m not in favor of defunding the police, I do believe that there should be extensive thorough training for police officers. That way, we’ll be able to slowly build trust in them.

Five days after George Floyd’s death last year, I was scrolling through my Instagram feed and what I saw was not only appalling, but I was outraged. I saw a video of a cosplayer named Bucks County Batman attending a racial justice protest as Batman. At the time, it had about 250,000 views. He received a lot of backlash from cosplayers, which he rightfully deserved. I added my two cents in the comments section of his video, saying that he was at a protest for George Floyd and not at a convention. Another cosplayer agreed with my comment and said that Bucks County Batman was using his cosplay for views and likes. Another cosplayer also got received backlash for doing the same thing, but as Miles Morales, contradicting his claims in a Facebook post that he did it for attention. He was a black cosplayer and I also called him out. I rarely go in on other cosplayers, but when you use cosplay as a backdrop to do something like this, then I automatically lose respect for you. I’m not afraid to call people out when they do something unbecoming. I’ll hold your feet to the fire and I won’t make any excuses either. I blocked Bucks County Batman on the same day he posted that video and unfollowed the other cosplayer’s page days later. The tweet, seen above, that I ran into last year, reiterated everything that I’ve said previously.

There’s nothing wrong with peacefully protesting or advocating for a cause that you strongly believe in. However, when you use cosplay for all the wrong reasons, it takes away the importance of these racial justice protests. It’s all about having respect for the people there and what those protests are about. Remember that it’s not about you. There’s a time and a place to cosplay. You’re free to cosplay, but please save them for cons, photoshoots, and other events that aren’t protests. People going viral when they shouldn’t in most situations should be a lesson for all of us that not everything needs to be seen.

In closing, many companies and corporations need to do more to support the Black community by hiring and promoting more black people to high paying positions. They can donate all the money they want to decry racism, but more work needs to be done. Diversity is very important and can be a game changer. Not only that, but to be paid fairly. Actions speak louder than words. They can talk the talk, but again, actions are more important than just mere words. Black people are still being paid less than whites. No one should ever settle for less, regardless of race or gender. After a year of protests, nothing much has changed. Fighting the good fight is all we can do and we’re not giving up. Not today and not ever. Black lives still matter today, tomorrow, in the future, and forever.